Who is the new Duke of Edinburgh?
The title of Duke of Edinburgh had been held by Prince Philip for over 70 years until his death on April 9, 2021.
He was given the honour on November 19, 1947 by King George VI, who bestowed it on his son-in-law when he married the then Princess Elizabeth.
After Philip’s passing on April 9 2021, the title was passed on to his firstborn son, the then Prince Charles, who ascended the throne to become King following the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on September 8, 2022.
Since becoming King, many have wondered who King Charles would pas the dukedom to, but now we know the answer.
Here’s everything you need to know, including how
Who is the new Duke of Edinburgh?
The new Duke of Edinburgh is Prince Edward, Charles’ youngest brother and the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.
Charles officially gave Prince Edward the title on March 10, 2023 to coincide with Edward’s 59th birthday.
Buckingham Palace said in a statement: ‘His Majesty The King has been pleased to confer the Dukedom of Edinburgh upon the Prince Edward, on the occasion of HRH’s 59th birthday today.
‘The title will be held for HRH’s lifetime. The dukedom was last created for Prince Philip in 1947, upon his marriage to Princess Elizabeth, who held the title of Duchess of Edinburgh before acceding to the throne in 1952.
‘The new Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh are proud to continue Prince Philip’s legacy of promoting opportunities for young people of all backgrounds to reach their full potential.’
The King had inherited the title on April 9, 2021, the same day his father passed away, but it was always known that he would not main as Duke upon ascending to the throne.
Edward receiving the title has been planned since 1999 with approval from the Queen – essentially the monarch’s approval is all that’s required to have the title be redistributed amongst the male bloodline.
Prince Edward already oversees the Duke of Edinburgh award, the initiative set up by Philip to encourage and reward physical education in youths.
Despite agreeing to his late father’s wishes in 1999, it did seem initially unclear whether Charles would actually hand the dukedom over to Edward when he became king.
Edward appeared to be aware of the uncertainty, hinting in a TV interview in the aftermath of Philip’s death: ‘It was sort of a pipe dream of my father’s… and of course it will depend on whether or not the Prince of Wales, when he becomes king, whether he’ll do that.’
But now all uncertainty is clear and Edward will inherit the dukedom.
The dukedom will not, however, pass down to the Edinburghs’ son James when Edward dies.
Viscount Severn will become the Earl of Wessex and Forfar when the title of The Duke of Edinburgh reverts to the Crown, the Palace said.
Edward will also remain for his lifetime the Earl of Forfar, another of his titles, but will use the Duke of Edinburgh because it is the more senior Scottish title.
How do Royals decide on titles?
When it comes to assigning the title of a Duke, there are certain traditions and rules in place.
In the British peerage, a royal duke is a member of the British royal family who is entitled to the title of a prince.
Dukedoms are the highest titles in the British roll of peerage, and the holders of these particular dukedoms are Princes of the Blood Royal.
The holders of the dukedoms are royal, not the titles themselves. They are titles created and bestowed on sons and male-line grandsons of the British monarch, usually upon reaching their age of adulthood (officially called their majority) or marriage.
The titles can be inherited but cease being officially royal once they pass beyond the grandsons of a monarch.
The Duke of Edinburgh title has been created three times by three separate monarchs.
Before being re-created by King George VI, the last Duke of Edinburgh was Alfred, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the son of Prince Alfred and grandson of Queen Victoria.
The title became extinct following Alfred’s suicide in 1900, which enabled King George to recreate it and bestow it upon his son-in-law 47 years later.
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